Conceptualization and System Design in the Monitoring of Urban Form

Abstract

Historically, humanity has congregated in certain places to benefit from a division of labour and scale economies. Yet, in this process, issues inevitably emerge surrounding urban form, understood as the physical configuration of the built environment. As settlements expand and technologies change, so do these inherent problems. Official responses are put in place to address them, thereby creating direct and indirect social costs and distorting pure market forces. Efficacious and transparent governance presumes accountability and some means of appraising these interventions. Thus, systems have been established worldwide to monitor physical changes in urban form against predetermined goals and objectives. Yet, many of these efforts have fallen short in terms of effectiveness, efficiency and equity and, whether acknowledged or not, they continue to do so. The research and policy focus should be upon the fundamentals – the conceptualization stage and design of such systems. In this article, diagnosis of common problems leads to six ameliorative strategies applicable in these early phases which could improve overall outcomes. Monitoring the physical features of the built environment is significant not only in terms of the logic and integrity of city planning but also for the welfare of urban populations. While equally important and challenging problems of implementation exist on the path to urban sustainability, they are left for another day.

Notes

Other approaches to indicator development include tactical (as a delaying strategy, substitute for action and deflector of criticism); political (when the results of evaluation are used as ammunition to support a certain political stand) or simply instrumental (when the content of indicators is used as evidence during judicial hearings or to guide action in the event of an environmental crisis).

This focus on effectiveness is ultimately more important than any key performance indicators which measure the efficiency of the monitoring agency, despite their prominence in many bureaucratic agendas (Wong, 2006).

For a demonstration of the potential difficulties, consider Bramley and Power's (2009) wrestle with non-linearity exhibited in just one variable, demographic density, as it influences (only) social sustainability within the urban form.

During the late 1990s and early 2000s, there was an attempt to introduce indicators based on community preferences rather than scientifically determined ecological levels. This system, commonly referred to as ‘views’ indicators, was introduced in the belief that community engagement was the shortest pathway to sustainable behaviour (Alberti, 1996; Innes & Booher, 2000). Basically, it entailed a redefinition of sustainability in terms of a desired set of ‘quality of life’ standards. Although the social capital benefits of such a system have been acknowledged (Sawicki, 2002; Wong, 2006), most authors agree that a community-generated approach cannot replace methodological and analytical rigour when it comes to determining the long-term ecological sustainability of an urban system (Brugmann 1997, Button 2002, Hueting & Reijnders, 2004; Hezri & Dovers, 2006; Wong, 2006). Whenever there is a risk of irreparable damage to ecological values, researchers opt for science-based physical limits (over views) as the most equitable approach to defining sustainability.

The ‘total quality management’ claim relates not to some retro application of the rational method and the physical excesses it produced in urban development in the 1960s and 1970s. Rather, it follows the thought that planning needs always to improve its technical performance, just as has industrial production and also more physically oriented professions such as dentistry and surveying. There can be no case for a failure to innovate just because the subject matter of planning is at once very large and widespread (as in the entire built environment), politically involved and conceptually complex. Critics would at very least argue that, despite these backdrops, a static stance fails to appreciate the potential of geographical information science and other recent facilitating technologies (e.g. Google Earth; decision support systems), which bear on the analysis of urban form. Just as progress has been made by scientists in measuring the natural environment, one would expect the advancement of capacities within city planning in the physical monitoring of the built environment.